France attracting international students

In order to attract more international students to France, CampusFrance has recently published the 5th edition of its Catalogue of programs taught in English. This guide presents courses delivered partly (minimum 50%) or totally in English in 178 French universities, Grandes Ecoles and specialised institutions, according to field of study. The latest edition includes some new features, such as the cost of courses, the percentage of teaching carried out in English, the existence of an institutional website in English and, where applicable, the level of French required. The present catalogue contains over 500 study programmes, which is almost double the number of the first edition in 2004.

According to a recent study on international students already studying in France, carried out by researchers at Paris 8 University and published by the Observatoire national de la vie étudiante (OVI), 80% of students questioned declare that France was their first choice of study destination. Other interesting results include the reasons why students chose to carry out their studies in France: 71% mentioned their knowledge of the French language, 51% cultural attractions and 50% the value of French degrees. The very low cost of tuition fees was in fifth position, quoted by 32% of respondents. On average, one student in four that took part in the study planned to stay in France after their course (12% of students from the Middle East and 37% of those from the Maghreb).